Consumers gained a little confidence in the national economy in May, buoyed mostly by a perceived improvement in the labor market.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index stands at 83 points, up from 81.7 in April. The Present Situation Index increased to 80.4 from 78.5, while the Expectations Index edged up to 84.8 from 83.9 in April, according to a news release issued Tuesday.

The widely watched consumer confidence had fallen in April. AIm, or Associated industries of Massachusetts, will release a new business confidence survey next week. The April survey said overall business confidence added 1.9 points in April to hit 53 points on a 100-point scale where 50 is neutral.

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey, based on a random sample survey by Nielsen.

Said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at The Conference Board:

“Consumer confidence improved slightly in May, as consumers assessed current conditions, in particular the labor market, more favorably. Expectations regarding the short-term outlook for the economy, jobs, and personal finances were also more upbeat. In fact, the percentage of consumers expecting their incomes to grow over the next six months is the highest since December 2007 (20.2 percent). Thus, despite last month’s decline, consumers’ confidence appears to be growing.”

The conference board figures its index on a 100 point scale and fashions it from survey results expressed in percentages of respondents.

Those results reflect a mixed picture:

According to the survey, the percentage of respondents stating business conditions are “good” decreased to 21.1 percent from 22.2 percent, while those stating business conditions are “bad” declined to 24.1 percent from 24.8 percent.

Consumers’ assessment of the labor market improved on the month. Those saying jobs are “plentiful” rose to 14.1 percent from 13.0 percent, while those responding jobs are “hard to get” decreased to 32.3 percent from 32.8 percent.

That optimism translated into how they see the job market, according to The Conference Board. Consumers anticipating more jobs in the months ahead increased to 15.4 percent from 14.7 percent. The number of consumers anticipating fewer jobs increased a smaller rate: 18.3 percent from 18.0 percent.

Consumers had mixed feelings as to whether they are in line for a raise: The proportion of consumers expecting their incomes to grow increased to 18.3 percent from 16.8 percent. But those expecting a drop in their incomes also increased, to 14.5 percent from 12.9 percent.

The percentage of consumers expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months edged up to 17.5 percent from 17.2 percent. Those expecting business conditions to worsen decreased marginally to 10.2 percent from 10.5 percent.